Reviews

I read this book in the most pleasant of destinations. It was warm and sunny, and I read the book next to a trickling river. It still bored me, and put me in a bad mood.

I constantly would read a highly descriptive, straight-forward paragraph just for it to be cut off with a simple, short sentence that made the prior paragraph pointless. An example is right at the start of the book, where Michele is climbing through the wrecked house, worrying about if he is going to fall or not and how he could hurt himself. The language in this descriptive paragraph is not captivating and completely pointless because the very next line wipes it out. 'But it didn't happen.' This type of thing happened frequently and infuriated me.

The book is messed up, and some things that the kids say are not suitable for young readers, but the language and descriptions are simple and boring, so is not suitable for older readers. I would not recommend this book to anyone, and I was totally surprised and a bit angry that this book could get such high reviews and ratings, when there is much better books out there that deserve better.

Cyndy(05/30/08)

Kidnapping of a childhood

An amazing read - I read this in one afternoon; I could not put it down. But don't expect a typical thriller/mystery - this book is so much more. And don't expect a typical coming-of-age story - this story is so much more. This is a nuanced, intelligent story.

Ammaniti's prose is sparse but it generously describes life in a five-house rural village during the hottest summer of the century.

Michele is the nine-year old protagonist of this story. Ammaniti does a superb job of presenting Michele's perspective of careening through the summer on his father's old bike to the discovery that it is not the monsters under the bed nor the bogeyman who would kidnap your childhood, but the humans.

Aimee(04/22/07)

What i thought.

I read this book for a school project. I really enjoyed this book because it was very interesting and kind of mysterious. This was the best book I have ever read! hope you enjoyed it to.:)

Ashlea(01/31/05)

From the moment i started reading this book i could tell that it was going to be one that i would remember. The detail that Ammaniti goes into is quite exquisite.The way he describes things makes you feel that you are there in the scene. I strongly recommend that anyone read this.we have to do it as a text for VCE English and I, for one, am glad it was on the list. Ashlea,16

Tracey(11/11/04)

I think that this book is realy good as I could not put it down. After the first 90 pages I just could not stop reading it! Niccolo` Ammaniti has written this book with insperation and lots of it. I would recomend anyone who has not read this book to read it! I told my best friend about it and to have a read of it and after she read it she said that it is one book that she would defentily by if she saw it on the shelf in a book store. Start reading this book and you will not be able to put it down. Have a read and you will see just what myself and everybody else has said is true. Just read it for yourself!!!

Alain LaVerdiere(09/07/04)

Whenever I go to the library, I pick up one or two "I'll take a chance books". Some I like some I don't. In order to qualify they have to be authors and books I 've never heard of. If I like the book I'll hop on the internet and explore whatever reviews of the novel or biography I can about the writer. Having done this I find "I'm not scared" is an international bestseller and even been made into a critically aclaimed movie. I liked "I'm not scared" without knowing any of this. I've worked in adolescent psyhchiatry for the past 20 years. I'm amazed at how Ammaniti can use his words to make you see through a nine year olds eyes. How his language let's you feel the heat in the air and the boredom, the tedium of living your life in a nowhere place. The book never feels heavy to read. The author's use of sly humour is one of the ways he manages this. It reminds you of a parent smiling at time's at double meanings that attach themselves, naturally for an adult to the things their kids say or ask. Of course it's in his ending where he turns that slyness on the adult and renders unto them the lesson of his parable. A nice surprize. An excellent book.

n.a.fan!(06/12/03)

I read his book inItalian- but I think i can judge it for the English version too- this guy is BRILLIANT in every way- not only for the way he can write so convincingly from a child's point of view but also for the way he describes everyday situations in which we lay people fail to see fantastic details, other stories... Niccolo Ammaniti's talent is his ability to weave a mosaic of stories spread across time and space, and make us see the big picture only at the very end- in a dramatic and unforgettable surpirse ending. I recommend this author to everyone.

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